Products
Below are some examples of European products and the previously used weapons they may replace.
- A400M – replacing C-130 and Franco/German Transall
- ASCOD IFV equipping the Austrian and Spanish Armies.
- Meteor – replacing AMRAAM as long-range AAM
- ASRAAM and IRIS-T – replacing AIM-9 Sidewinder as short-range AAM
- Eurofighter Typhoon – replacing F-4 Phantom II, F-16s, Mirage F-1, Tornado F.3
- Eurocopter Tiger – for France, Germany and Spain
- EH101 & NH90 – largely replacing European helicopters
- PzH 2000 – replacing M109 Paladin
- F-100 Class Frigates replacing US designed Knox frigates in Spain, Oliver Hazard Perry frigates in Australia and Dealey class frigates in Norway.
- S-80 class submarine equipping the Spanish Navy.
- ATF Dingo
- Fennek
- GTK Boxer
- Horizon class frigate and FREMM multipurpose frigate both for the French and Italian navies
- Rotterdam and Galicia class LPD, replacing Newport class tank landing ships in the Netherlands and Spanish Navies.
- Type 212 submarine, equipping the German and Italian navies.
There are several examples where one country continues to pursue purely national programmes because collaboration would be unacceptable or undesirable. For example both the UK and France continue to develop and operate independent nuclear deterrent. Likewise France's desire for military and industrial independence has motivated its continued pursuit of high-technology projects, e.g. Dassault Rafale.
Multinational programmes can fail because of disagreements about price or capability. For example while the UK terminated its collaboration with France and Italy on the next generation frigate (Horizon CNGF) and started a national Type 45 programme. However the warships will share some systems, primarily the MBDA Aster missile.
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair came under pressure from President Bill Clinton to select Raytheon's future missile to arm the Eurofighter, however the UK government selected the European Meteor air to air missile. The Meteor could be deemed riskier, however the Meteor armed Typhoon will not be subject to U.S. export controls and MBDA now has a missile product with no real competition from American manufacturers.
Likewise European governments were actively dissuaded by the US Department of Defence from continuing the A400M project, the Pentagon argued that the Lockheed C-130J and Boeing C-17 provided all the capability European governments needed and were already flying. The DOD also argued that to spend limited budgetary resources on such duplication was foolish. The previous generation American fighter plane (F-16) was widely sold throughout Europe.
Read more about this topic: European Union Defence Procurement
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